My Adventure to Kumamoto City


Eventually, I saw signs for Kumamoto castle, and figured although I hadn't really come to visit tourist spots, it would be better than just driving around and then leaving, so I attempted to follow the signs for the castle. At one critical point, either by my own fault or by the fault of the sign-placers, I was lead astray and ended up driving down some little road in the completely wrong direction.

...Working my way up to the top, I read about who had built the castle, who ruled from this date to that date, about the Seinan war (Japan's final civil war after the Meiji restoration where troops loyal to the Shogun rebelled; and were defeated).... Though I didn't snap a great picture of the really haphazard city look, just picture a lot of urban sprawl and high building density.

...I wasn't too concerned—at first—since I figured I would eventually come across a street that I would recognize and get myself back on track to going home.

Yesterday (August 7, 2004) I decided to hop in my car and take a drive to Kumamoto City, the nearest large city to me. The drive over was really cool, again winding through the mountains, though traffic was a bit slow at times due to construction and the likes. I left around 1:30 from Gokase, and got to Kumamoto at around 3:30 or so. The only problem was that I didn't really have a plan. I just figured I'd find the center of town, park, and do some free-form exploring. One thing to know about Japanese cities is that it is difficult to find the center of town. Much like Manhattan, a Kumamoto (and most Japanese cities) are just a wide-spread collection of buildings. Also, parking is not something you just run into. The only parking I saw was for specific stores, so I couldn't just leave my car there. So I ended up driving around just seeing what I could find.

Eventually, I saw signs for Kumamoto castle, and figured although I hadn't really come to visit tourist spots, it would be better than just driving around and then leaving, so I attempted to follow the signs for the castle. At one critical point, either by my own fault or by the fault of the sign-placers, I was lead astray and ended up driving down some little road in the completely wrong direction. Once I had convinced myself that I was not heading the right way—and it usually takes me a while to convince myself of this—I turned around, and voila! There were the signs to the castle again. This time, I made it all the way there, parked and up into the castle I went.

Like most Japanese castles, Kumamoto castle had been mostly destroyed by fire, so the building standing today is a replica. Inside, it looks nothing like the original castle. All the walls are plastered, it's air-conditioned, and it's become a museum documenting the history of the castle. Working my way up to the top, I read about who had built the castle, who ruled from this date to that date, about the Seinan war (Japan's final civil war after the Meiji restoration where troops loyal to the Shogun rebelled; and were defeated). It was in this war that the castled burned. Once at the top, I was afforded a great view of the really ugly Kumamoto city. In general, city planners don't concern themselves too much with aesthetics. Though I didn't snap a great picture of the really haphazard city look, just picture a lot of urban sprawl and high building density.

After I left the castle, my real adventure began--I got hopelessly lost. I wasn't too concerned—at first—since I figured I would eventually come across a street that I would recognize and get myself back on track to going home. No such thing. I went in the wrong direction right from castle and was meandering around an area quite far from my desired locale. Luckily, the guy who had the car before me had a map book of Kyushu, so I was able to pull up Kumamoto and find out where I was. (And thank GOD I know Japanese...) Whoops! Boy was I off track. Of course as soon as I went the other direction, there were signs for central Kumamoto, which is where I wanted to go. Back on track, I found an udon (a type of Japanese noodles) shop I had decided I would eat at, had dinner (it was okay) and went home. The drive back was pitch black, so I didn't get to enjoy all the sights on my return. All in all I'd say it turned out successfully, and now I at least know something of Kumamoto…for my next adventure!



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Posted: Tue - August 10, 2004 at 10:04 PM           |

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